my eyes slowly fluttered open, a hand instinctively reaching out for my mate. only he wasn't there, where my mate was supposed to lay there was nothing but cold sheets, the only remnants of his visit last night the faint smell of him clinging to them. my face twisted into a frown before he pushed himself up. he should've expected this, he never stuck around long enough for him to wake up, cam thought with a bitter sigh.

a soft knock at the door brought me out of my thoughts and i glanced up, for a brief moment hoping it was my lover coming back to tell him he loved me and was only out for a few moments. the voice that announced their presence quickly squashed my hopes.

"luna? its me, beta rune. can i come in?" i nodded in response before remembering he couldnt hear me. "uhm, of course. " i replied loudly enough for him to hear before wiping stray tears away from my eyes and crawling off the bed. the beta, a tall man with broad shoulds and eyes like coal that pierced into your soul, entered the room quickly, closing the door with a click behind him.

his eyes softened as he took in my disheveled appearance, a hand reaching out to gently brush my cheek. "oh cam.. what has he done to you.." runes words were quiet, but i heard them nonetheless. my soft white ears flattened as i attempted to hold in the sobs, but it didn't work and i flung myself into his open arms, burying my head into his chest. as the cries racked my body he gently held me, as if i would break at any moment, his hands gently rubbing down my back.

"shhh.. its okays cam. i'm here for you now" he murmured softly, my cries softened after a few minutes till the only sign i was crying were the tear tracks on my cheeks and my red swollen eyes. " i-i'm sorry.. i'm s-supposed to be a s-strong luna b-but i don't t-think i can take this a-anymore." my voice shook, a sound that absolutely disgusted me but i had no control of anyways.

rune frowned before he let out a long sigh.

"i know you don't want to hear this right now but your presence has been requested in the dining room. they can't eat without you, you know that." i nodded numbly, untangling myself from his arms to get dressed. as i pulled out my outfit for the day, simple black jeans and and an oversized t-shirt that hung off my shoulders that my mate had left in my room one day, i prepared myself mentally for what was about to come.

the walk down to the dining room was agonizing, but it gave me time to calm my emotions at least. i walked into the large room with what i hoped was a positive expression. my smile quickly dropped. she was in my spot again, the spot i thought was supposed to be mine. this had been happening more and more often lately and i was done with it.

"u-uhm olivia.. i believe that is my seat." my voice was soft, and i barely refrained it from shaking. there was that hopeless feeling again.

olivia's eyes widened and she gasped.

"oh dear! i didn't know that i'm so sorry." lies. everyone knew that was MY seat, luna's had sat in it for generations.

"no need to move, he can find a new seat." my mates voice filled my ears and i trembled, tears dangerously close to falling down my face again.

cade walked past me, his gaze stuck on olivia as he smiled. i never got to see that smile. cade sat in his chair, briefly turning his striking green eyes to me before motioning for me to sit down.

i took a seat on the other side of him slowly, my hands shaking as i pulled myself closer to the table. this wasn't fair. that was MY seat, one of the only thing i had that she didn't. i may have his mark as his mate, but olivia had held his heart, something i learned i would never have.

rune entered the dining room, his brows furrowing in confusion as they landed in between me and olivia.

"isn't that chair luna cam's?" cade's sharp glare quickly shut him up. rune frowned deeper but took his seat besides me quietly, his hand resting on my thigh to comfort me. shooting him a grateful look i dug into my food. as other wolves started eating i instantly picked up on the whispers. they never stopped.

"did you see his face? he looked like he was about to cry."

"if he was my mate i would favor another. he couldn't even dream of outshining olivia." i heard everything, had heard it all before. i knew i wasn't much to look at, my hair was blond and flat, not dark like typical omegas, my skin had a slight tan to it and was dotted with freckles, whereas other omegas had pale unblemished skin. my eyes were a dark blue, nothing special there. to most i was a typical looking human, if it wasn't for the white wolf tail and ears that i had. my wolf was non-existent and i never shifted on my 16th birthday like everyone else. the only thing that spoke to my omega blood was my body, i was small and thin, but had shapely hips i heard most omegas would kill for.

i paused in my eating, a bite halfway to my mouth. i was suddenly feeling nauseous. runes grip on my thigh tightened. unfortunately, i couldn't leave till alpha cade said i could so i quietly set down my fork and focused on blocking out the whispers and cades shameless flirting with olivia.

' cam.. are you okay?' runes voice invaded my head, startling me out of my sef-destructive thoughts. i nodded discreetly and took in a shuddering breath.

"i'm okay" i whispered, barely more than a breath. i had the choice to say it back via mind link but the assurance of speaking it out loud made it a tiny bit more real to me. i could see his nod out of the corner of my eye and he continued eating, occasionally asking me things through mind link so i wasn't embarrassed. i appreciated the gesture, as it helped me take my mind off of the heart breaking scene infront of me. olivia had spilled her drink all over her blouse and cade was fussing over her, his hands dabbing at the spill with tenderness i didn't know he was capable of.

cade stood up suddenly with a screeching as his chair scraped against the ground, olivias hand entwined in his.

"excuse me everyone but i need to go help olivia clean up. everyone is free to leave when they wish." the second they were out of earshot i stood up from the table, turning around as tears finally slid down my face.

as soon as i was in the hallway i broke out in tears again. i fled down the hallway quickly, stopping before i rounded the hallway to my quarters.

"cade stop! that tickles! you need to shave" olivia's giggles filled my ears and i blanched. "shhh not so loud, our packmates will hear." cade. a pup went rushing by me to the next hallway, tripping me over. the hallway went so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

cade had a hand under olivia's shirt, his other hand holding one of her breasts as it hung out of her half buttoned shirt. olivia screeched and ripped herself away from MY mate, quickly stuffing herself back into her bra and buttoning up her shirt. cade stared at me in shock, but olivia at least attempted to look innocent.

"oh..l-luna.. i didn't see you there.. i was just- we were just. i need to go" and without another word she rushed down the hallway. cade looked conflicted, either stay and help up his MATE, or follow the girl who held his heart. cade helped me to my feet in silence, his eyes adverted from me when i refused to grab his hand, too stunned to even move.

"i'm sorry. i didn't think you would be returning to your quarters so soon." cade reached out to pick me up by my arms but a low growl stopped him. i gasped and turned my head to see who would dare growl at our alpha, my eyes widening as i recognized rune. his usually hazel eyes had turned a deep black, his pupil blown up to announce that his wolf was in charge.

"you've gone to far this time alpha. don't touch him and leave." runes voice was deeper than before, the growl still at the back of his throat. cades eyes narrowed before he whipped around and stormed off, most likely to look for olivia, but not without a parting warning. "we will be speaking of this later, when you have calmed down i want you in my office." and with that he was gone.

rune immediately rushed to my side, his hands cupping my tear stained face. he gathered me silently in his arms before carrying me to my room.

i was exhausted, my chest ached and all i wanted to do was snuggle my mate, smell his wonderful scent of crisp apples and snowed on pine trees. alas, we did not share quarters. alpha quarters are for them and whoever they say so, i was not on that list. but she was. oh how i wished i didn't hate her, she was a nice omega, everything i wasn't, slim and curvy with long hair and pale skin that made her stunning green eyes pop.

i would never be like her. and it was that thought that never left my mind as i slipped into sleep.